Help yourself to these new screenshots just released for F.E.A.R 2: Project Origin. The game is still on course for a European release of 13th February 2009
Category Archives: Microsoft
FEAR 2 Screenshots
F.E.A.R 2: Project Origin is the much anticipated sequel to F.E.A.R and the expansion pack F.E.A.R Files. It is due out in Europe on Friday 13th february on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. I hope you are not superstitious. Stay tuned for more incoming information about this games release.
In the meantime, enjoy these preview screenshots
Head on over to Youtube for some preview trailers
Vista on Advent 4213 Netbook
So I have my shiny new netbook but it comes preinstalled with Windows XP. Having used Vista since beta versions and got used to it’s features and way of working, I felt it was a backwards step to go back to XP and not have those extras.
First of all I installed the Vista compatibility wizard program to see if the netbook would be capable in theory of running Vista and thankfully everything passed the test. Next I had to decide which Vista version I wanted to buy. I didn’t think I would need all the features of Vista Home so I went for the cheaper option and purchased Vista Basic Upgrade from the Microsoft online store as it was quite a bit cheaper than the Home Premium version.
I downloaded all the files and ran the installation from the XP desktop. It got to the expanding of files part and just threw me out with an error that it could not overwrite the boot – without the ability to overwrite the boot it would not be able to install it no matter how many times you re-try.
I searched for hours online and was even on the phone to Microsoft support for nearly an hour trying to get it to install but no joy. That is, until while searching I happened across a forum with a topic dealing with this exact problem.
http://www.4winmobile.com/forums/netbook/ – that is the forum you want, check the sticky at the top for the Vista upgrade guide.
The problem only exists if you are doing an upgrade from the XP desktop, so if you are doing a clean install with an upgrade or full version booting from the disc this problem should not apply to you. The problem is the boot folder hidden within XP. This tells the computer how to boot the machine into XP. The way to complete the upgrade is to delete or rename the folder into something else so the installation thinks it is not there. But be warned, if you delete the folder you will not be able to reboot the machine if the installation does not work. So I renamed mine so it was still there if I needed it.
The folder is located in the root of the C:\ drive. Go to C:\ and then go to tools – folder options – click on the view tab. Place a tick in “show hidden files and folders” and untick “hide protected system files” – this will ensure that you can see the boot folder and can rename it to something else.
Once I renamed the folder and restarted the upgrade it went all smoothly without a hitch at all and soon enough Vista was installed on the machine. After installation everything worked as normal. All the hotkeys worked and the Avantquest connection manager for the sim card worked fine. I had to get a few driver updates but that is to be expected. The machine is very speedy and I have had no problems whatsoever.
For those who like numbers, my Windows Experience Score is 2.7 It is really only let down by its “gaming graphics” which really is not an issue as netbooks are most definitely not gaming machines.
Experience Score
Netbooks – Todays Tech
People will always remember the Asus eeepc kicking off the Netbook range but history books should show that it was the OLPC (One Laptop Per Child) project that really started the concept of a netbook – that is a small, low cost laptop affordable for all. Asus were the first to develop such a laptop for mainstream public though so they get the credentials.
Netbooks seem to be the latest in portability solutions and most of the big companies now have a netbook range or are readily working on one. Acer, Dell, HP, Toshiba MSI and Samsung are just a few of the companies offering netbooks all with varying specifications and varying sizes. Some have an 8 inch screen while others offer you a 10 inch screen and are bordering on the edges of what are also known as Ultra Mobile Laptops – laptops which are higher specced and more expensive but with a small screen typically 10-12 inches. Generally an Ultra Mobile laptop will today come with Vista pre-installed but at the moment you will expect a variation of Linux or Windows XP on a netbook.
advent 4213 netbook
A few weeks ago I got my hands on the new Advent 4213 Netbook. Now Advent is not renowned for being the best company in the world and in its early days they pushed out some very flaky hardware, but the new 4213 Netbook is a delight to behold and is packed to the rafters with mobile features and is one of the most impressively packed netbook there is in the UK market today.
Advent have given us a 10 inch screen, Intel Atom 1.6 ghz processor, 1gb ram, 160gb hard drive, 3 usb ports, SD card slot, VGA out for connection to external monitor, webcam, ethernet, bluetooth, wi-fi and the big selling point – integrated HSDPA modem so you can pop in your sim card and have 3G broadband speeds depending on your local coverage. It is also unlocked so you can use any network sim but beware a data package is important so you do not get unexpected high bills. Sadly there is no optical drive, but as far as I know, no netbook has a DVD drive yet.
The netbook is very light and weighs 1.4Kg (although feels lighter than that) and is encased in nice glossy black plastic which has a tough feel to it. It is actually so light I can easily lift the machine from the open lid with only two fingers although in practice this is not a recommended method of carrying the machine. The battery life is a little shy of 4 hours which is better than many standard laptops, this may be in part to the new Atom processor which is supposed to be energy efficient. The screen hinge is tight and stiff and gives a reassuring solid feel. The only problem is the small keyboard. This is not a problem unique to this netbook but a common problem with all netbooks. Because of the small form factor, something has to give and usually this means a smaller keyboard than standard. Because the keys are quite small you have to be more careful with typing to avoid errors.
The 4213 runs with Windows XP Home preinstalled and some may be wondering how they reinstall the Windows XP without a DVD drive. Well what Advent have done is to do the usual “create a recovery disc” feature on the desktop however it does not run on a CD or DVD, you create it onto an SD card or USB stick which is 2gb or more in size. The SD card or USB stick is then a bootable drive with your restore software on it. The restore partition is still there though so if you lose your media you can restore the drive by pressing F10 on booting up the machine and restoring from there.
Most of the hardware can be switched on and off with function key hotkeys. Bluetooth, wi-fi, HSDPA, webcam and touchpad can all be disabled with function key. If you reboot the machine all settings will be saved and if something is disabled it will remain disabled until you enable it again. Oddly though, the webcam is always enabled no matter what. This is quite annoying as I do not use webcams and I do not want it using power and showing its light everytime I use the machine. So I keep having to disable it although that is just me, there is no reason why I cannot leave it running except for saving battery life.
I have to make a mention of the “silent mode”. This is an energy saving feature that will underclock the processor to 800mhz when powering from battery. This works incredibly well. Some reviews have said this makes no difference to the sound of the machine but I can state now that when silent mode is activated, the machine is truly silent, you cannot hear a single whirr from it. Silent mode can also be activated and deactivated from a function key so it can also be used when powering from the mains.
Like all laptops/netbooks, the Advent 4213 gets warm underneath but from my experience it is lukewarm at best and never gets hot, it is never a problem to actually have it on your lap if a table is not forthcoming.
Most cheap laptops nowadays come with loads of junk preinstalled and takes an age to uninstall but thankfully Advent have included the bare minimum. From what I can see there is only Adobe Reader, Flash, Microsoft Works 9, Cyberlink Webcam software and Avantquest Connection Manager software which you can use for your 3G/HSDPA sim card connection. There is also of course the Techguys recovery software which helps you to create your bootable media.
There is not a lot more I can say about this netbook. As said before it is one of the most impressive netbooks available in the shops today and can be purchased from PC World and Pixmania amongst other places for approximately £329. This does mark the price up from other netbooks available on the market but you do get a lot of bang for your buck.
How does the Advent 4213 perform using Vista as it’s operating system? Well come back later for a further post on it’s Vista performance.
Fallout 3
What a great game. I just finished the main story last night and have a great sense of satisfaction and money well spent. I am extremely disappointed that you CANNOT continue your game in the world after the final quest, so I have to go back to a previous save now to do all the side quests I missed.
The game was very similar to Oblivion, but many times better. In Oblivion I could travel for miles wandering around and not meet anybody and not be bothered, but here in Fallout 3 every step I felt there was something around the corner. I stepped with a real fear that something would jump out on me. I think the cause of that was the post-nuclear-bomb setting. The ruins, the desolate buildings and burned out cars, I was always moving with excitement and intrepidation about what was coming next. Even in areas I had been before and killed all enemy, I felt like something else was around the corner.
Graphically it looks fantastic but I did have a few issues with tearing at times and a few framerate drops. The most annoying thing though was that quite often after saving or fast travelling I would lose my hotkey settings for weapons so had to keep re-assigning them. An annoyance but at least I had no crashes or game killing bugs.
Fallout 3 for me is definitely a candidate for Game of the Year, I think the only one that can beat this now is Call of Duty: World at War, we will see about that one next week.
Tomb Raider Underworld Demo
You would have thought after years of the Tomb Raidergames being criticised for awkward jumps and dodgy camera angles that the developers would take note and do something about it. It appears that they have ignored these pleas and the evidence is in the new downloadable demo on Xbox Live.
Far from improving the game it is the same old controls with the same old frustration and the demo leaves me feeling cold. I usually have a rule of not judging a game by its demo because demos often do not reflect the finished game, but in this case I feel justified in thinking that it is crap. I was expecting something fresh and new and some fixes of age-old problems.
Instead I have a feeling of a rehashed old game and that the developers have made no attempt to bring us something new.
Frustrating jumps, difficult to see angles, dodgy camera angles, and what is with the sonar map? It is useless. It is like looking at an old videogame from the 8-bit days. If they are going to give a map at least make it useful. Milking a cash cow springs to mind.
I will not be buying this game, it is just the same old shit, different name.
Saints Row 2 Review
Sandbox games are quite common nowadays but it is rare that one jumps out at you as being a great game. Some of them, like The Godfather, are pretty mediocre and have you driving from place to place doing the same routine and have nothing special to offer. The most famous sandbox series of course is the Grand Theft Auto series and every sandbox game after that gets compared to the last GTA offered. In this case it is the most recent GTA 5. GTA5 looks so much better than Saints Row 2 graphically, but in many respects Saints Row 2 is the better game because it is much more fun with a lot more to do on the side.
Now that is where my GTA comparison will end because I feel that Saints Row 2 is a game that deserves to stand on it’s own merit. The game is chock full of things to do on the side. Not just your drug courier missions or car collecting for garages but the developer has looked past these tired old missions and given us some great fun things to do. One of the side missions was to drive a truck full of poo and to spray it all over the buildings indicated to cause damage to the buildings. You have to reach a certain amount of damage caused for that level to pass. Another side was racing a mini vehicle dressed in a flameproof suit. You have to get to the checkpoints and at the same time riding over bombs to explode them and cause damage to cars and people around. But my favourite has to be “FUZZ”. You dress as a policeman and drive around attending crimes to stop the criminals – you have a cameraman in tow to collect footage for the reality show “FUZZ”. There is a footage bar to complete and the more crimes you clean up you increase the bar to its fullest. Each level is a little harder and you are requested on different occasions to use certain weapons like an RPG or flamethrower to create the maximum footage. The police are on your side as homies during these fuzz missions so if there is one nearby they will jump in your car and help you out.
The main missions themselves are quite varied and my only gripe with them was that I had to fill up my respect level to play the main missions. This involved doing side missions. Sometimes this involved a long drive to the nearest activity to play the activity and the drive all the way back to the mission point. Now whilst the side missions were fun, they sometimes got int he way of what I wanted to do. Some days I just wanted to drive through the main storyline to get to the end and do the activities when I wanted, but they were forced upon me.
Back from the original game are the strongholds. You takle over a stronghold by beating the goons and then that area of the map becomes yours. There are 45 areas to beat. Your strongholds can be attacked at any time though. In the last game the attacks were very frequent and quite disruptive to the flow of the game, but this time around it was pleasant to have only a few attacks to deal with. I think I had 3 through the entire game from start to finish.
Visually the game is not a stunner like some other recent games but it does look quite good. I had a few framerate issues on a couple of occasions but nothing major. One thing to note, this game is buggy. I had crashing of the console, bugs and glitches people getting stuck, homies not following me, and stupid AI who would stand there and do nothing. But despite all these flaws I kept coming back for more. If this game had not been as much fun as it was then it would have been binned days ago.
I thoroughly enjoyed playing this game and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys the openness of sandbox games.
GREAT/10 – A buggy game but such a lot of fun.